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Saturday, April 26, 2014

Practitioner Pointer: Does the use of Skype raise HIPAA compliance issues?

Practitioners should be aware of the risk involved.

By Legal and Regulatory Affairs staff
American Psychological Association - Practice Central
Originally published April 24, 2014

Given the growing use of technology for communication, many practitioners are interested in knowing whether popular options are compatible with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements. Skype, whose basic features are free and easy to use, is one such option of interest to practicing psychologists.

HIPAA does not specify the kinds of technologies that covered entities should use for creating, receiving, storing or transmitting electronic patient health information (ePHI). Under the HIPAA Security Rule, covered entities must conduct individual risk assessments about the technologies (hardware, software, etc.) they use that store or transmit ePHI.